Within the field or organic electronics, it is possible to identify essentially two key commercial fields of technology. The first field of technology concerns applications of organic matrix materials for converting light into electrical power, and, conversely, the other field focuses on the construction of electrical components by means of organic semiconductor material. Examples of the first-mentioned category include, for example, photodetectors and organic solar cells, schematically illustrated in FIG. 1, which convert light into an electrical signal or into electrical power, and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), which can generate light by means of organic electronic materials (see FIG. 2). For example, the second field of technology includes organic field-effect transistors, schematically illustrated in FIG. 3, in which a doping reduces the contact resistance between electrode and semiconductor material, or bipolar transistors, which are described in greater detail by way of example in DE 10 2010 041 331 A1.
What is common to all applications is the fact that they include electrical transport layers as essential functional component, which transport layers have different conduction mechanisms depending on their composition. Generally, a distinction is made between an intrinsic p-(hole) conductivity and an n-(electron) conductivity of the organic materials. Since the electrical properties of these organic substance classes are often inadequate for an efficient use of the components, they are combined with additional compounds, which are intended to improve the electrical properties of the layers. This is usually implemented by doping with metal or further organic compounds. One approach for attaining significant improvements of the conductivities is the addition of metal complexes.
For example, WO 2005 086251 A2 describes dopants for the production of n-conductive layers which, inter alia, can also have the following structure:

The structure of this compound class is also referred to in the literature as a “paddle wheel complex”. In particular, the publication describes the use of a metal complex as n-dopant for doping an organic semi-conductive matrix material in order to change the electrical properties thereof. The presented compounds are intended to be usable as n-dopants in respect of the matrix material.
DE 10 2012 209 520 A1 claims metal complexes of groups 5-7 as p-dopants for organic electronic components and in this regard describes complex compounds which are based on chromium and molybdenum and which, as binuclear metal complexes, form a paddle wheel structure.
The dirhodium tetra(trifluoroacetate) complex presented as an example of a rhodium-based p-dopant in WO 2008/154915 A1 is also based on a paddle wheel structure.
WO 2013/182389 A2 describes the use of metal complexes of groups 13 to 15 as p-dopants. Here, in particular bismuth complexes with bismuth in the oxidation stages III and V are presented. The shown complexes each have just one individual central atom.
WO 2011/033023 A1 describes copper complexes, particularly Cu(I) complexes, as p-dopants, which can be polynuclear. Polynuclear copper complexes are always characterized here by an even number of copper atoms, for example, 2, 4 or 6 copper atoms.